Breadcrumbs
by Prestige Productions
Summary: Yuu Koutari lives a quiet life as the daughter of a bakery owner, amid her mother's worries for the business, her own dashed hopes and dreams involving basketball, and the appearance of a new kid and his family. She should be swamped by all the pressure, that's where her other self comes in.*ON INDEFINITE HIATUS*
1. Chapter 1

_**Well, as I continue my never ending journey into fanfiction madness. I've decided to give Black Rock Shooter another go, only this time WITHOUT the weird crossover ideas,**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Black Rock Shooter belongs to Huke**_

In the darkness of the Otherworld there exists a wandering soul who lives a life of endless battle, her metal claws gleaming with the blood of her prey as she searched the endless deserts for her next target.

Unfortunately on this day her prey would find her, a group of hooded figures would be charging their way over the dunes while wielding various weapons of all shapes and sizes, but they all had the potential to kill if used in the write hands.

But this pillar of strength feared nothing, if anything she hungered for the disadvantage as her claws twitched in anticipation of the coming onslaught as her prowling pace became an all-out gallop whilst preparing to crash through the wave of Blanks who believed themselves to be a match for her power.

For her, this was just another day in Paradise.

The smell of freshly baking bread was always a welcome greeting a sleepy Yuu Kotari as she made her way into her washroom to prepare for the day with her usual routine: A lukewarm shower where she counted down the five minute time limit that their penny-pinching landlord had installed on all of the bathrooms in their apartment complex, after that it was brushing her teeth with the Frog-E brand toothbrush that her mother had insisted on buying for her since she was three. (At that age it was cute, but at fourteen the sight of a widely-grinning cartoon frog looking back at you in the mirror was beyond annoying and a tiny bit creepy.) and once her chompers were at their whitest, she would head downstairs to make herself a bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch, peruse the funny pages, then make her way across the street to the family bakery for another day of work alongside her mother.

 _"Sometimes I wonder why mom decided to open a bakery, it's not like anyone really values fresh bread when they can get it just as easily in the city."_ Yuu would sigh as she stared up at the humble and crudely-lettered sign that hung over Blissful Bits Bakery, she would spare a glance to the side as she watched two of the more popular girls from her school laughed happily as they made their way to the train station that led into the inner city. Regular girls who were just living their lives and having fun, they didn't have to spend their weekends helping to run a family business that was barely staying afloat on a GOOD day. _"I'm not asking for much, maybe just a LITTLE time on the basketball courts sometimes?"_ With a heartbreaking sigh she would turn to the front door and plaster a smile upon her face, sure she would be stuck for the next six hours indoors when she would rather be outside and playing street ball but at least she was earning a bit of a heftier allowance then most teens would in her position.

And a swollen piggy bank was definitely nothing to sneeze at when it came to a rare day off, this thought would brighten her smile more naturally as she stepped inside the shop to find the front counter empty and giving the short-haired girl something to be concerned over.

 _"That's not right, Mom would never abandon the counter AND leave the sign on the "open" side"_ She would keep her steps light as she calmly scanned the ovens to find the morning loaves rising as calmly as they always did, her mother's dedicated to baking was something to be admired after all. She was up before dawn, hard at work on prepping the day's offerings, getting the dough settled for bread, pastries, and anything else that a bakery would usually sell. "Nothing's burning so that's a good sign at least." Yuu would calmly set down her bag behind the counter and proceeded to the back room to put on her apron and gather her thoughts, but as she was doing her best to try and tie the annoying string behind her back to hold the apron together she started hearing bits of a conversation on the other end of the door.

"Please, I just need a little more time…no, I wouldn't dare miss a payment- Yes..yes I understand." A heavy sigh could be heard from the other side followed by a slam of a door leaving Yuu even more perplexed at the situation, her mother was never one to overtly lose her temper regardless of the situation instead channeling her emotions into crafting different baked goods: Cinnamon rolls if she was feeling sweet and lovey-dovey, jalapeno bread if she was feeling sassy, for her to be affected so openly..was akin to a pig sprouting wings out of its bag and taking to the sky.

It was something that just shouldn't be possible.

Strength could feel the anxiety and agitation wash over her like a bucket of ice water, helping her to focus on the fight even as the blood threatened to drip in her eyes as she threw aside a Blank that had been impaled on her scorpion-like tail. It was her duty to take on the pain of her other half, as it was for the few other greater powers she had sensed throughout the Otherworld that hadn't dared saunter into her world. But things like this were of a trivial concern to her even as their spears and arrows sliced through her body, Strength would continue her bloody march through the desert wasteland despite the number of Blanks that continued to block her path. Letting out a psychotic laugh as her Orge Arms transformed to a shape the allowed her to fire a large and steady stream of bullets as the Blanks twitched and writhed in silent agony before collapsing into a heap, the spent rounds dropping from her Ogre Arms as she surveyed the valley of carnage that she had caused with her power.

This too was a part of who she was: A blood-soaked murderess who helped shoulder the burdens of a girl on the Other Side while traversing her desert in search of the Blanks and banishing them in the cruelest ways she could think of, it was one of the many things in her life that brought a smile to her tan-skinned face as she began climbing to the top of the dune. This was were her enemies had decided to surface from, so it seemed like the logical decision that any of the remaining troops were now hiding just beyond it.

Unfortunately for Strength this would not be the case, as a heavy force would swat her aside as she tumbled through the sands at a blistering speed before digging her Ogre Arms into the sand to halt her momentum before flipping into a kneeling position, her hoodie flung back to reveal short white hair and a merciless grin upon her face at the thought of yet another battle coming her way. She would stand up slowly as her Ogre Arms readied themselves to shower the unlucky Blank in a world of hurt, but as she turned to face the enemy at hand this type of mindset would be discarded as she stared into the eyes of a red-eyed dragon, its jaw full of Blanks as it stared down at the diminutive Strength with disgust before swallowing the mouthful of mindless beings and letting loose a mighty roar as the girl leapt into the sky to begin their fight in earnest.

Yuu would sigh in exasperation as the last customer for the day shuffled off with the last loaf of pumpernickel bread (One of her mother's more quirky business decisions.) but she was nonetheless grateful for her workday to be over, now there would be no excuse for her mother to avoid her questions as she had for most of that day thanks to the influx of the usual elderly customer base. "Man do those people love to talk your ear off." She would sigh and munch does on a piece of banana bread she had purchased with her allowance, savoring the sweet flavor of the bread and allowing her tired body to relax from the hustle and bustle of the day. _"Mom's been freaked out the entire day, she barely gave old man Nagata his regular ten minutes of banter before shrugging him off."_ Discarding the wrapper her bread was carried in, the short-haired girl would untie the apron and set it on the counter as she went to move the "open" sign and flip it in order to begin cleaning the shop. But a sudden thud on the window would startle her out of the banana bread induced autopilot she found herself in, a dark-haired young man would stare back at her as he struggled to lug numerous grocery bags in his arms as his hazel eyes pleaded with her to open the door.

"Ugh, today WOULD end with a freakin' straggler!" She would point to the sign on the door as she slowly and deliberately began flipping it to face "Closed", she needed answers from her mother and now wasn't the time to deal with some Johnny-come-lately who decided to wait until sunset to indulge in a bread run. _"C'mon buddy, take the HINT and get lost!"_ But the raven-haired boy would shake his head furiously as he deliberated setting his groceries down, relenting as he carefully lowered the bags from his arms.

"Please, for the love of Kami! My family and I just moved into town and my mother decided for some insane reason to cook dinner from scratch and we NEED bread!" He would whimper audibly as Yuu paused to actually consider his request, sighing as she opened the door and gestured for him to walk inside before noticing the abundant number of bags and helped him gather the groceries before heading inside the shop.

"It's official, you've beaten me in the crazy parent department. A whole meal made from scratch on the first day you've moved into town, that's..just insanity with a capital I." She would earn a tired chuckle for reply as he carried the rest of the bags inside while scoping out the meager selection of bread for the day, his expression falling to pieces as he didn't see a single baguette on the shelves. "Something the matter, you look like someone just decided to kick a puppy in the face."

The young man would sigh as he examined the shelves in a hurried panic for a full minute before leaning against the wall with a noticeable frown. "She wanted something fancy, and the baguette is the fanciest bread that I could possibly think of. I figured that if we got it fresh then Mom would finally relax and ease up on me and my younger sisters, we've still gotta adjust to a new school on top of everything else for crying out loud!" He would shake his head tiredly as he began picking up the grocery bags carefully, trying to keep a perfect balance so that he wasn't overweighed on either side. Yuu bit her lip in hesitation as she watched him begin to slowly waddle towards the door, an empty-handed soul that would walk through the front door of a new and unfamiliar home while having to deal with a stressed out parent and two younger siblings to try and wrangle in the meantime.

"Hold on a sec, I think I have something nice and fancy that'll impress your mom!" With a cocky smirk she would dart behind the counter and retrieve the brioche she had stored away for her own personal enjoyment and quickly stash it into a bag for him as she made her way back to him. "Brioche, it sounds as fancy as the baguette but it's nice and sweet so even the little ones can enjoy it." Yuu would place the bag of bread in his mouth before he could even give her a proper Thank You, making sure to slap an I.O.U. on the front of the bag before shooing him out the door and finally locking it behind him.

"That was very kind of you dear, I know it must be hard to turn away the lure of money in order to do a good deed but..karma has its own benefits in the long run." Sumira Koutari would give her daughter a warm smile as she began wiping down the used bread trays without saying another word, furthering the confusion that Yuu was already feeling in the current circumstances. "Yes..sometimes good karma can make up for any kind of financial failings." She would make her way to the back room in order to wash the trays and catch a few winks of sleep before beginning the cycle of madness again.

"Mom, is everything alright?" Yuu's voice would tremble as she asked this question, the older woman had been on edge that entire day and nothing seemed to lift her flagging spirits. "You've been out of sorts the entire day, and all this talk about money is kind of scary. You always said that you started the bakery as a way to let others know what true happiness, and then there's that weird bit..about bread being the embodiment of life…and stuff." The younger girl would be visibly perplexed by what she was saying, but Sumira seemed to grasp her reasoning all the same as her smile seemed to grow brighter before continuing her trek to the back and leaving her daughter feeling disheartened at how quickly her questions had been brushed aside. "Dammit mom, you shouldn't have to shoulder this alone..I'm right here in the trenches with you."

Strength would feel the weight of her Other Self's worries and doubts pressing down upon her back, barely keeping her from avoiding a blast of flame from the rampaging dragon before countering with another storm of bullets from her Ogre Arms as she landed onto the sand dunes and sprayed out as many bullets as she could muster before rushing into smash the dragon's belly with her fists to little effect, gritting her teeth as she backpedaled from an oncoming claw swipe as she tried to think of a counterattack for the ebony beast's armored scales.

She had a mission to bear the pain of her other self, and as she stared up at the great dragon standing before her it was painfully obvious that failure was not an option.

With both sides letting out defiant roars, Strength and the Black Dragon would begin round two with a thunderous crash.

 _ **So, I based this story off of a BRS Crossover I have up called Black Rock Magic, it's basically the cast in a universe where the women of the world all have the potential to become Sorceresses and in order to hone such a power they attend a school known as the Academy of Might and Magic. In this universe Yuu is the daughter of a baker whose business is facing hard times (in the crossover it's already sunk.) and while in reality she's doing her best to soldier on, every shoving aside her love of basketball. In the Otherworld Strength continues her job of looking out for Yuu (Sorry to fans of the anime but no switcheroo here, Strength is Strength, Yuu is Yuu) while dealing with the Blanks that have begun to emerge.**_

 _ **As for the OC at the end, he's got a role to play but he'll be nowhere as insufferable as the OC in the crossover turned out.**_

 _ **If you've made it this far into the Author's Notes, I have a poll running on my profile page and if you'd like to see more Black Rock Shooter stories from me, then please vote there.**_

 _ **Ta-Ta for now.**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Well, I dunno if it's the lack of readers in the category or what but I'm still enjoying writing Yuu as the daughter of a baker**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Black Rock Shooter belongs to Huke, Genji and the twins are mine**_

Genji Kurama finally waddled his way through the door of his family's new home by the time the sun had finished setting, not at all surprised to see his younger twin sisters Kana and Asuka squabbling with one another over who would use the glitter markers today leaving him to shake his head tiredly before setting the bags down. "Alright girls, I thought we had a schedule set up after the last fight." He would roll his eyes as both girls tried to argue that it was their day to use the markers, at one point it had gotten so bad that he had decided to buy an ugly stuffed caterpillar with light up eyes of differing colors: Red for Kana and Green for Asuka. All the girls had to do was bonk the caterpillar on the head and whatever color shined would solve the problem, at least that was what was supposed to happen anyways. "What did Mr. Wriggles say when you bonked him this morning?" The raven-haired young man would pluck the box of markers from the squabbling duo in order to finally get their attention, both girls would scowl indignantly at him as he held the box out of their reach.

"Mr Wriggles isn't working, me and Asuka both bonked him on the head but his eyes wouldn't light up! We even tried going to mom for help but she kept doing the thing." Kana would mimic a phone being held in one hand while wagging her pointer finger, she was the more energetic of the pair as she could always be seen practicing whatever karate moves she had seen on TV and was often trying her best to dye her hair a different color every so often.

"Is Mr. Wriggles dead because we bonked his head too hard?" Asuka's sea green eyes would begin filling with tears at the thought of the stuffed insect not lighting up anymore, the younger twin was a quiet and stoic girl, not even crying when she had entered the world while Kana was a bundle of noise. So for her to be this upset meant that this was a definite Code Red in terms of situations, and something that even Genji couldn't ignore as he knelt down to ruffle her hair gently before doing the same to Kana and receiving a tap to the chin for his trouble.

"Ooh, I think I actually felt that one kiddo." He would rub his chin and pretend to wince as the raven-haired girl smiled proudly before spotting the bags by his feet and squealing in delight. "Why don't you two take out the groceries while I go check on our wormy little friend, I'll let you girls decide what we make for dinner tonight." The girls would grin excitedly as the dug into the bags of groceries and begin setting them on the table, watching them for a little bit just to make sure nothing had been bruised on the way home before making his way upstairs to the twins bedroom and groaning when he saw that their door had already been colored and drawn on before making his way inside and seeing the worm sitting on their shared nightstand.

 _"Well at least you're still in one piece, that's more then I can say most of the girls stuffed animals."_ He would tap the worm on its head once, frowning when the eyes didn't blink and giving it a harder tap just to make sure that the problem was what he suspected it to be. "Batteries." He would check the worm's tail and pop open the hidden compartment to find a pair of AA batteries sitting inside, sighing internally as he removed and dispose of the drained batteries before replacing them with batteries that he had planned to use for his old walkman. "Every other kid in town has an MP3 player while I'm still stuck listening to Dad's old crooner CD's" Suppressing a hiss of anger he would tear open the pack of batteries and place them inside the worm's tail and closing it up, smiling as its eyes lit up when he gave it a test tap before setting it back on the nightstand.

It was one less fire to worry about as he stepped out of the room and headed downstairs seeing the small memorial to his deceased father Katsuyori Kurama, a police officer who had died in the line of duty while saving an abused housewife from her methed-up husband and eventually dying from a stab to the liver while on the way to the hospital. _"I'm trying my best here Dad, but I can only do so much with Mom burying her head in the sand and working crazy hours."_ Bows his head in prayer while clutching his fists tightly as he recalled the funeral procession, the chief presenting his mother with the folded flag after the twenty-one bell salute (His mother believed that the traditional twenty-one gun salute to be too traumatic for his young ears, she wasn't entirely wrong about it either, but now whenever he happened to hear a bell ring, his stomach would sink with the crushing weight of grief.) _"I know I'm supposed to be man of the house and all, but what about MY dreams?"_ His internal anger would be disrupted by the sounds of the girls arguing once again, rubbing his temples before standing up and going to tend to whatever disaster was about to go down.

Yuu would make the walk home from the bakery alongside her mother after having helped closed up shop for the day, both women were exhausted and quiet for a majority of the walk as she mulled over how best to approach the subject of payments and money involving the bakery.

"Starting tomorrow I'll need you to head straight to the bakery after school lets out, I'm planning to debut a new flatbread recipe that I've been working on and I'm gonna need all hands on deck." Sumira's eyes would gleam at the thought of the bakery once-again being filled with customers, conveniently missing the look of surprise and flash of fury upon her daughter's face as she absorbed what she had just been told.

"B-but tomorrow's the day when basketball tryouts start, as team manager I **HAVE** to be there!" The short-haired girl had already begrudgingly accepted that she had to give her weekends up to make sure that Blissful Bits ran smoother, but even her mother wouldn't dare to try and break the verbal contract that they had made up before she had begun working. "You promised me at least a week's heads up before you try anything new! There's no way in Hell I'm missing tryouts because you decided to have another one of your weird 3 A.M. inspirations and need me to play assistant, I'm sure you'll be able to hold your own with the usual crowd." Yuu would scowl and continue the walk home when she felt a hand gripping her shoulder even as she tried to struggle free of her mother's iron grip forged from years of kneading bread.

"Do you honestly think I like asking this of you?" Sumira's voice would crack audibly as she moved to face her daughter whose face was a scowl of defiance despite the tears that threatened to fall from her eyes, her grip on the younger girl would weaken just enough for her to break free and take a few steps back. "Yuu, I know that it's hard for you to sacrifice something you love but we all had to make sacrifices in life. Without the bakery we don't have a leg to stand on, not just as a family but as a community." The older Koutari would look around at the buildings standing beside their humble little bakery, what used to be a motley crew of family owned businesses that got by upon the sweat of a hard working brow and good old fashioned elbow grease were now nothing more then a memory as trendy restaurants, boutiques, and coffee shops now ruled the roost.

Although she could live with the coffee addicts as the never could turned down a good croissant.

"But I've already sacrificed enough for the shop: My weekends, my personal time at the basketball courts, any chance at a normal life filled with things a normal fourteen year old girl would do! Now you're asking me to ditch my responsibilities as Team Manager for the good of the community?!" Yuu was seething with hatred as she spoke, her body trembling with every word as the anger of a life that was never really hers to begin with as she glared at the woman who had brought her into the world. "Well…well!" She knew what she wanted to say next, but the words refused to come as she looked to her mother's tired and weary face and swallowed down the venom that was festering within her heart as she turned away to continue the walk home, wondering how she would explain to the coach how she would be unable to assist during practice this season.

 _"Fuck the community! What have they done for us besides take the buyout money and run away to their fancy new digs!"_ Strength would snarl as she spun in midair to avoid yet another stream of flame, her Orge Arms raining down punches upon the beast's skull before leaping away and spraying the creature with bullets as the dragon cried out in pain as it whipped the Otherworlder away with its tail while backpedaling and unfolding the jet black wings hidden on its back as it began to retreat. But she was not about to let this beast run away from the beating it had rightfully earned by attacking her, Yuu's angered ranting pounding in her ears as she leapt after the Blank-eating dragon and landing upon its back, making sure to use her stinger tail to anchor herself to the creature's back before using her Ogre Arms to start tearing at the sinewy flesh the bound them to the main body as the large reptile screamed and thrashed about in an agonized attempt to rid itself of the attacker.

 _"What's the point in slaving your life away serving your creations to lousy, belligerent hipsters who'll happily brag about supporting local businesses while inside their little echo chambers but when we turn our backs they'll drag their self-entitled asses into Starbucks and waste a day blogging about how they contribute to Social Justice!"_ Strength would grit her teeth and yank at the wing with every last ounce of power she could muster, her orange eyes gleaming with delight as the leathery flesh was torn away even as her already bumpy ride just got a whole hell of a lot worse thanks to the lack of one wing. The dragon would cry out in pain as it spiraled down towards the ground, Strength would waste little time in unhitching her tail and leaping off of the sinking beast and back onto solid sand well before the creature did.

 _"It's not fair, I didn't ask to be a baker's daughter…I just wanted to live a normal life."_

The pale-haired Otherworlder wasn't without sympathy for her Other Self, but the sadness and anxiety was a heavy weight for any soul to bear and Strength often did her best to carry such a load. But even she needed to blow off some steam every now and again, and as she heard the great beast attempting to flee and would roll her eyes in disgust before turning back to put the poor creature out of its misery.

Genji would sigh tiredly as he walked his sisters down to the elementary school across from his own junior high, the two girls talking excitedly amongst themselves as he fought back another yawn in vain. "Alright guys, if anyone asks what time mom is picking you up tell them about the arrangement and then wait patiently until I come and pick you up." The two girls would give a simultaneous "Kay" before going back to talking in whatever secret twin language they had developed between one another this week. "I'm serious you two, and Kana don't even think about demonstrating your jiu-jitsu techniques on the playground this time! Last thing mom needs is to drag herself out of bed for a parent-teacher conference on our first day of school." The raven-haired teenager would stop as they reached the gates of the school, both girls adjusting their backpacks one last time before letting go of his hands.

"Big brother, can we stop by that bread place you were talking about last night? I wanna thank the pretty baker girl for that sweet bread she gave us." Asuka would flash a bright smile before leaving, not even waiting to hear his response before running off to the playground. Kana on the other hand wouldn't be as optimistic as her twin as she turned to face him, a sour expression on her normally mischievous face as she looked to the playground full of laughing children.

"Big brother, do you think we'll be able to stay here longer than we did with the last school? I'm really getting tired of moving and having to make new friends." The now pink-haired girl would frown as she looked to her older sibling for some kind of an answer, her mood a complete 180 to earlier in that morning when she was showing him her freshly dyed hair. "I'm not like Asuka, I can't make friends with people as easily as she can and-"

Genji would lay a calm hand on her shoulder and try and give as confident a smile as he could muster despite feeling otherwise. "Hey, no one's asking you to be Asuka. I think you're just fine being my little buzz saw, heck I bet you'll make plenty of friends once you show the other kids just how fast you can make it across the monkey bars." He would even give her a playful wink before giving a hug. "And if you're really lucky, then you might even find yourself a nice boyfriend." This would cause the pink-haired girl to blush uncontrollably before kneeing him in the ribs as he pulled back from the hug.

"Ugh big broooo, you know boys are icky!" She would turn to run off into the school, stopping halfway upon realizing something and turning back to shout. "BESIDES I'M NOT STUPID LIKE YOU, DEVELOPING A CRUSH ON THE GIRL AT THE BAKERY! She would run off quickly and start scurrying up the jungle gym and surprising the other children, and upsetting another boy who was about to reach the top.

Meanwhile Genji would be holding his ribs in agony while attempting to catch his breath and glaring at his little demon of a sister. "Low blow..you little shit."

Unbeknownst to him Yuu would be on the other side of the street making her way through the school gates when she had heard the little girl's joke, hoping deep down that the brat in question wasn't referring to her.

 _ **Ain't younger siblings the best, always unknowingly embarrassing you when ya least expect it!**_

 _ **Anyways if you like what you read here then stop by the poll on my profile page and give Black Rock Shooter a vote, because the instant 2017 starts that poll is closed and (depending on the results) updates may or may not be frequent**_

 _ **Ta-Ta for now!**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**I'm sorry the updates aren't more constant, trying to deal with a messy home situation among prepping for next semester as well as some much needed R &R**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Black Rock Shooter is a HUKE creation, Genji and the twins are mine**_

The dragon would let out the smallest sounds of agony as Strength continued approaching the downed beast, her orange eyes gleaming at the thrill of having been able to defeat such an enormous foe despite how much of a nuisance the battle had been in the beginning it was nothing compared to the sweet taste of victory that now awaited her.

But this very fixation to victory would prove to be a costly error as the dragon's pained cries became a roar of a defiance as it swung its mighty tail and sent the pale-haired Otherworlder flying aside as the beast slowly lumbered back to a fighting position, with one wing gone flight seemed out of the question but that didn't mean that their battle was concluded by any stretch of the imagination and it would flash a toothy grin that displayed as such before pursuing her on foot.

Strength was now back to feeling annoyed, not just because the black dragon had managed to cheap shot her when she least expected it but also because the girl had ignored the very instincts that had helped her to survive in such a cruel place as this one. It was an amateur mistake for someone in her position to make, and judging by the heavy vibrations she could feel beneath her feet that the beast now knew it had a clear shot at devouring her as it had done with Blanks from earlier. But she wasn't like those weak chaff, she had survived battles that would lead most Otherworlders to drop to their knees and question their sanity and had done so while bearing the burdens and worries of a girl who was systematically having her dreams overtaken by a mother's overinsistence on keeping a struggling business afloat, even at the expense of her own daughter's hopes and dreams. Her Ogre Arms would propel her back to a standing position just in time to see the scaly fiend rushing at her with all the might an injured beast could afford to muster which was a surprising amount more than even she was anticipating as she thrust her arms forward to keep the dragon's jaw from clamping shut and swallowing her whole.

Clearly this was shaping up to be her most unorthodox battle yet, and if she was having this much trouble in her world then what must her other self be enduring?

Yuu would breathe a heavy sigh as she walked through the school halls, a place that usually served as a welcome reprieve from the monotony of her weekends spent at the bakery in the daylight hours before shuffling home to an apartment that felt more like a well-furnished prison ward and scraping together whatever she could for her and her mother to eat before heading off to sleep so she could repeat the cycle anew the following day in the life of a baker's daughter.

But at school she could be someone different; someone that everyone could come to like and (with some time) the kind of person her mother could be proud of, but perhaps the most important aspect of her time at school was being the manager for the basketball team. Sure she had some aptitude for the game itself, and was never shy about playing a pick-up game or three out on the local courts but Yuu knew that no matter how well a team functioned on the hardwood it could only go so far without a proper manager backing them.

" _Sure it's a thankless job sometimes..maybe even a lot of the time. But without my work the team would be sunk: No clean towels mean that the sweat could build up on a player's forehead and even get into their eyes and cause their visibility to go to pot during an important pass, and if there's no water waiting for the team during those breaks in between periods then someone could get dehydrated and pass out!"_ Yuu couldn't help but shudder at the thought of such a thing happening to one of her teammates, the girls did have a bit of a tendency to push themselves following a loss and the first-years had a nasty habit of overworking themselves in an attempt to catch up to their seniors. That's where a great team manager had to step in and keep order, it was Yuu who would watch over the team with the sharp eye of a hawk, the warm heart of a caring mother, and the open ear of a kind barkeep with a slew of semi-depressed regulars.

But that was before things started to take a turn for the worse, when the bakery slowly began encroaching on her free time: pickup games in the park would be replaced by peddling pumpernickel to the few who seemed intrigued to try it based on how silly the name sounded. Going to the theaters to catch the latest summer blockbuster turned into trips to the supermarket to gather more supplies for her mother's next revolutionary idea that's "guaranteed to send the customers coming in droves" even though the clientele never seemed to change no matter what gimmick Sumira tried to pull. The pattern of people they attracted to their humble establishment was always the same: In the morning, it would be the elderly patrons who would plunder their assortment of muffins while complaining how lazy the youth of her generation seemed to be as well as how people used to be more hardworking and take pride in their appearance. And while Koutari could easily count herself as one of the few females in her school that kept her skirt at a modest length, the adults had no clue just how awful things were back "in their day" and had forgotten that the reason they worked so hard was to keep food on their table and a roof over their head much like she and her mother were doing now.

But even for their continued belligerence and bellyaching the elderly patrons had believed in something that seemed tangible and able to be accomplished, the same could not be said for the trendy hipsters that made up the afternoon rush. No, this special breed of conceited asshole always sported two things whenever entering the bakery: The first was a cup of trendy coffee from the local boutique coffee chain located next to them, which while smelling quite heavenly at first Yuu would later come to learn that said aroma was just a mask for the seemingly boiled sewer water that lay within. The second (and most assuredly annoying) thing was that everyone seemed to have a cause to support, something that certainly seemed important in their eyes but annoyed other patrons to no end. " _I can't believe that those jerks had the nerve to accuse mom of using child labor!"_ Her hand would go to her pocket out of habit and feeling a bit of relief that her wallet was still on her person, and feeling particularly bountiful this day. " _It's not labor when you're getting paid after all."_ She rounded the corner to the athletic department with a sigh as she locked eyes with the door at the end of the hall, marked with the name "Kamoshida" and feeling an unfamiliar churning in her stomach that intensified with each step she took. "Coach really isn't going to be happy about this." Yuu would take a deep breath as she placed her hand on the door, hoping against hope that somehow, she was still asleep in her bed and that this was nothing more than a bad dream.

Strength would roll away to avoid another snap from the dragon's great maw while spraying another volley of bullets to its face, a move that would proof ineffective as it simply moved its head to the side and swiped at her with its tail once again. She was ready for it this time as she reached out and grabbed the tail with her left hand and began pulling it with all of her might even as she grit her teeth in both defiance and exertion as she gripped the now flailing tail with both hands and began swinging the beast in a manner similar to an athlete swinging a shot put for maximum distance. The bewildered creature could only cry out in astonishment before being thrown back over the sand dunes where their battle first began, giving a psychotic squeal of enjoyment as it landed back onto the ground with an audible thud before sprinting after it in pursuit. This creature may have given her a fair bit of annoyance throughout the day, but it was certainly more of a challenge than an army of Blanks would've given her in that same amount of time. On some level, she hated the thought of ending their little game, especially since she was also feeling the familiar weight of her Other Self's unease. " _But I don't want to leave the team, everyone's counting on me to be there to help!"_ Her sadness only served to amplify Strength's rage as the fingers of her Ogre Arms became bladed claws, a malefic grin slowly adorned the face of the pale-haired Otherworlder as she approached her fallen prey, the scaled beast's breathing had become labored and heavy as it began to truly feel the extent of its injuries and seemingly inched closer to an eventual demise. But as the petite girl leapt upon the back of her tormentor, the plan was not to ease the mammoth fiend right up to death's door but instead dish out a healthy fraction of the frustration she had endured through the use of slowly drawn out and deliberate pain.

This was turning out to be quite the lovely day for her, quite the lovely day indeed.

"Ahh Yuu-chan, I wasn't expecting to see you until the afternoon. I trust you're ready to help me whip the new recruits into shape?" Ryusuke Kamoshida had been the head of the school's athletic department for as long as Koutari had been a student, before that he was a well-respected basketball player in his own right and had even represented all of Japan in the Olympics at one point as well as being scouted by many other countries for their own leagues. When asked why he would suddenly leave the sport at what appeared to be the prime of his career for the sake of taking a coaching position at their school, his answer seem to leave many a reporter stunned (as well as crushing the dreams of many sports agents and celebrity hanger-ons) while seemingly leaving her inspired.

" _I believe that the game of basketball can be more than just a means to great fame or wealth, more than just a way to escape the hard times. Basketball promotes teamwork between people from all walks of life, no one can truly go it alone on the court but when everyone is working together and focused on the goal at hand can we truly achieve and better ourselves."_ She remembered that press conference very well, how Coach Kamoshida's words filled her with the determination to try out for the team and how he made her feel like an invaluable member of the team despite just being the Team Manager.

It broke her heart to have to tell the man she had come to admire over these past few years that his reliable right-hand gal wasn't going to be standing beside him in what was to be her last year as a middle school student, it was bad enough that entrance exams were looming over her head but basketball was always the reliable safety net whenever she became too overwhelmed with life or schoolwork.

And now thanks to her mother's latest harebrained idea to bring in the customers and by extension the money that came with them just to keep Blissful Bits up and running, her safety net was about to be cut to ribbons.

"Yeeah, about this afternoon's meeting coach. Some things are going down at the family bakery and my mom needs me there, so I won't be able to make it to today's meeting coach..or any of the team's meetings this year." Yuu would do her best to avoid letting her heartbreak show, but no matter how much of a brave face she tried to muster forth, there was no hiding the tears that had begun making their way down her cheeks as she bowed to her teacher out of a mixture of shame and gratitude. "I'm really grateful for everything you've given me Kamoshida-san." Her voice threatened to break as the sobs made their way to the surface, unaware of the box of tissues that were being held out to her.

"Yuu-chan, there's no need to cry now. I'm sure there must be some way we can convince your mother to keep being Team Manager, after all you're the lynchpin that keeps our team together and we'd certainly hate to lose you." Kamoshida would watch as his young Team Manager gratefully accepted the tissues that had been offered to her, smiling gratefully as she wiped away the tears that were still flowing and furrowing his brow in thought as to how he could keep his faithful right hand on the team. "Surely your mother realizes just how important the team is to you, why there's not a day that goes by around here where I don't see you with the other girls trying to improve their technique. And don't think I haven't noticed those handmade signs encouraging folks to come and watch our games, I see one every morning when I get my bagel from the deli nearby my apartment complex." He would smile gratefully as the shorter girl tried her best to hide a slight flush of embarrassment at his discovery of her handiwork, it wasn't every day that a Team Manager would prove to be just as Gung-Ho as the team she supported.

"Believe me Coach, I'd do anything to stay with the team but..let's just that money's starting to get pretty tight with the bakery and mom needs all hands on deck if her latest plan is gonna get any traction at this point." Yuu could feel her shoulders slump under the weight of hopelessness that she was currently feeling just by mentioning the bakery, it seemed amazing just how fast that her former sense of embarrassment was being eroded by the crushing weight of a responsibility no child was meant to shoulder. "Without the bakery…we lose everything…"

Kamoshida would furrow his brow once again as he absorbed both the finality of her words and the look of soul crushing defeat on what was usually one of the most upbeat and happy people he had come to know since becoming an educator, he would quickly reach for his pad of student passes and scribble one out for her. "Head back to class now Yuu-chan, we can discuss this further following this afternoon's practice." He would place the hall pass in her hand with a confident grin before ushering her out the door and hopefully onto the start of a much better day, once he was sure that the coast was clear he would take out his cell phone and immediately contact his Money Man. "Alright, time to start cashing in some favors. Can't afford to let my right-hand gal slip away, now can I?"

Genji could still feel some soreness in his ribs thanks to his younger sibling's stunt outside the gate, although considering Kana's penchant for playing rough he really should've tried harder to protect himself and yet there he sat in the Nurse's office with a cold compress to his side and doing his best to avoid nosy questions.

"Kurama-kun, I'm finding it very hard to believe that your younger sister was responsible for such an injury." The brunette-haired woman would frown in disapproval as he once again reached for his backpack in another attempt to leave. "Kurama-kun, if there's something wrong at home- if someone's hurting you we can help!"

He could tell that this woman meant well in trying to look after him and that by rights she would have to contact the authorities since abuse was suspected, the raven-haired teen would present the troubled woman with an all-too-familiar business card before reaching for his backpack once again. "Honma-san was my father's best friend back when they were at the police academy, and a damn fine detective too. You make your mandatory call ma'am, as for me I'm fairly sure that I'm beyond late for homeroom." With a pained flourish and some effort on his part, Genji would make his way off the bed he had been forced to sit on while being examined and begin his lonely trek to class as he looked down at his schedule curiously. The first day at a new school was always something of an annoyance to him, as he had zero time to properly get his bearings in order direction-wise before being thrown to the wolves and forced to fend for himself, not to mention that once word got around that he was the son of a cop two things tended to occur: Students would automatically label him a "Narc" and avoid him like the plague, or would show him an uncomfortable amount of sympathy upon learning his story. Neither outcome made him feel better about himself as a person, as such he would avoid social situations until their family would eventually move once again.

"Alright, class 3-B..this looks like it's the right place." Genji would take a calming breath while palming the lucky rabbit's foot that his father wore every day of his life, except for the one day he needed it most. " _I know you're watching me up there Dad, I promise to not fuck this one up too."_

Strength would be laughing with glee as she peeled back another row of dragon scales from her defeated opponent, receiving only the slightest sounds of agony from the dying beast as she scowled in annoyance. Usually a feeling of relief would come from inflicting damage to another being, it was a part of the reason she spent her days in search of prey within her desert. It served as a great numbing feeling to the pain that came from her other self, to bear the weight of another was her mission in life but even she needed something to help her along on those annoyingly tough days. But as she went to tear herself another pound of dragon flesh, she felt the chill that came with meeting another Otherworlder, something that shouldn't be possible given that this was **her** territory and only the foolish would dare to brave such a place. However, even her instincts seemed to be agreement as she looked up to see someone in strange violet armor now standing before her with the tip of a spear pointed at her eye.

 _ **Sooo, this is gonna happen now! Somebody finally stepping onto Strength's turf and challenging the beast herself.**_

 _ **A kind-hearted teacher trying to keep a student from going off the beaten path.**_

 _ **The new kid's first day at school while juggling the responsibilities that come with being Man of the House, as well as being a normal teenage boy!**_

 _ **Ta-Ta for now.**_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Man this one took forever, and went slightly off the beaten path of what I had in mind..ahh fuck it!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: Black Rock Shooter and it's characters belong to Huke.**_

 _ **Special thanks to Fire Lord 626 for helping me edit and mold this mother.**_

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Strength barely managed to dodge the sharpened point of her opponent's weapon grazed the side of her face, a faint trickle of blood falling from the scrape as she lashed out with her metallic tail with an excited grin as the armored intruder's helmet took the brunt of her strike, the sparks reminding her of the summer fireworks her other self often bared witness to before having to leap back and gain some distance from the stranger.

The violet intruder would kneel to the fallen dragon and gently run a hand over the beast's head sympathetically before looking back at the still-grinning Strength as he stood up and slammed the pole of his weapon into the ground, his faithful friend disappearing in a shower of light with a mournful cry before he resumed a fighting stance and charged towards the diminutive Otherworlder.

Strength would quickly transform her Ogre Arms into a massive pair of Gatling guns and start showering the sky with bullets, laughing maniacally even as the armored warrior spun his weapon to deflect whatever bullets that were headed his way. This would do little to deter the dark-skinned girl as she leapt into the air to deliver a brutal series of punches to her newfound foe before sending him plummeting to the ground with a double-fisted shot to the top of his head, surprised to feel the vibrations of pain running through her hands as she grit her teeth to avoid yelping in agony before shifting back and spraying the crater below her as the cloud of dust loomed large as she hit the ground with a satisfied sigh.

If she were a human being, this would be the point where she would need a smoke.

Yuu would quietly make her way back to the classroom, still not entirely sure just what Coach Kamoshida had planned to deal with the situation involving her mother and Blissful Bits, but her time spent beside him as Team Manager had shown her just how shrewd the man could be when it came to problem solving.

"There's a reason that Coach managed to make it all the way to the Olympics and I know he's smart enough to have saved his money unlike other people who end up in his position, but I'm still worried..once mom gets an idea in her head, there's nothing short of divine intervention that can stop her." The short-haired young woman would sigh quietly as she imagined the athletic older man trying to stop the speeding locomotive that was a focused Sumira, going so far as to slam into the train shoulder-first and bring it to a sudden stop like a hero from a comic book. "Just trust Kamoshida-San, he'll save the day!"

Despite the boisterous nature of her heroic daydream, Koutari was still very much faced with the possibility of having to announce her resignation as manager, which meant not only having to face her fellow team members but also a dear friend.

"And that's when she decided to knee me in the ribs like BAM!"

Yuu would open the door to her class to the sound of generous laughter coming from most of her classmates, surprising her as a good chunk of them were the more studious types, and yet even they could spare a few titters for whoever was speaking in front of the class.

"And I'm just down on my knees, gasping for air like a pack-a-day chain smoker trying to sing Happy Birthday to the twin terrors, and Asuka's just busting a gut the entire time like some drunken Yakuza lord." The class would spare another round of laughter as Yuu snuck her way over to her seat, letting loose her own burst of fake laughter just as the legitimate laughter died out and all eyes were suddenly on her.

"Well Yuu-chan, I trust you have a very good reason for being late this time?" The obtusely hawk-nosed Hirufumi Sawatari was responsible for the teacher of mathematics at their school, a subject that was as well liked as the American science teacher whose droning voice was responsible for the sudden increase of pillows being kept inside of lockers. "Especially since today happens to be Kurama-san's first day in my esteemed classroom. Well, come on child..speak up!"

The short-haired girl would sigh dejectedly as she got up from her seat and made her way to the irritated woman's desk, wanting nothing more than to just set the pass that Kamoshida had given her and skulk back to her own desk and continue to brood.

"Fancy meeting you here, looks like we're gonna be desk neighbors for a little while." Yuu would just stand there in stunned silence as the raven-haired young man held out a hand to her, a friendly smile with noticeable dimples adorning his face as she continued her best impersonation of an unhappy statue as Koutari's brain struggled to reboot itself. "Gee, I guess my stunning good looks left her speechless!"

This time there would be a small smattering of boos as both students made their way back to their respective seats, it was weird enough to have someone transfer in mid-semester but this boy seemed to be a bit of a jokester: someone who had zero idea of what it was like to feel the crushing weight of responsibilities, no doubt living life with a devil-may-care attitude and a happy smile on his face even as the rest of the world seemed to toil in the throughs of struggle.

If Yuu had to sum him up in less than a handful of words: Desperately in need of an ass-kicking.

"Man, I didn't think that bell was ever going to ring!"

The boy from earlier would give an exaggerated stretch of his arms before getting up from his seat and packing his things away, seemingly making more banter that she couldn't be bothered to follow as she began making her way over to her locker. " _How can he be so happy all the time, he's so sickeningly sweet that it feels like I can catch Diabetes just from being near him!"_ Yuu would quickly switch out her math books for her science texts, making doubly sure to cram her comfy pillow in one of the few pockets that weren't as overly stuffed as their counterparts before slamming her locker door shut.

"So, what's the deal with everyone having pillows, I thought we left nap time back in kindergarten."

Yuu was beyond annoyed with the goofball's behavior, she was already at her wit's end due to the living train wreck that was her mother and the bakery, and to have this laughing jester trying to make light of the world around him was akin to pouring gasoline on the raging fire that was her temper.

"Ugh, do you **ever SHUT UP!?** " Her outburst would cause the admittedly bubbly young man to go silent, as well as the denizens in the hall stop and look on curiously as the diminutive dynamo stepped up to the free-wheeling newcomer and glared daggers up at him. "I'm sure that because it's your first day that you feel like you can just say anything and it'll go right by us because first day jitters. Hate to break it to you but nobody cares about your stupid jokes, people like you are a dime a dozen around here and by the end of the week you'll just be another face in the crowd!"

Yuu was literally seething with barely restrained rage at this point, even the crowd seemed to give the normally peppy girl a wide berth as her target looked on in shock.

"So, you go ahead and throw out your little quips while they're still fresh, because unlike you I actually HAVE something to look forward to in my life once the classes are done for the day!" Taking a much needed (and frankly well-deserved) breath, she would turn on her heel and bust her hump in a mad dash to get to class and pray that there was still an open seat in the back row, giving her ample opportunity to sleep and dream of a life devoid of over-bearing mothers, run-down bakeries, and assclown boys who lacked even the minimum capacity for understanding proper social decorum.

The armored Otherworlder would be traveling the deserts in a haze, the diminutive girl had proven to be stronger than he had been expecting, even managing to best his faithful companion Nidhogg and forcing him to send him back inside of his lance to rest and regain strength.

Eventually it would be reborn into an egg, an egg that would be nurtured and protected until he found a suitable place to shelter it and stand watch until Nidhogg was reborn anew, but until then he would continue to wander these lands with nothing but his weapon and instincts to defend him.

The air around him would shift suddenly as a crushing weight fell upon his shoulders, sending him tumbling to the sand in agony.

" _What did I do to deserve such a tongue-lashing, I was just trying to be nice. Maybe finally pay her back for that Brioche, not exactly as sweet as she said but we ate it..my sisters wanted to say thank you!"_ He didn't understand why such a crushing weight came packaged with such an annoying whine, a boy who seemed ill-equipped to handle the responsibilities that have been thrust upon him and instead of forcing himself to stand tall and carry the burden like a good soldier, the buck would instead be passed onto the warrior's shoulders instead. " _I have enough problems with a self-important bitch at home, I don't want another one to deal with here!"_

The weight would continue to burden him with every step, even as the air around him became filled with menacing intent. Almost as if they sky itself were now watching him proceed forward, the desert sands giving way to an area surrounded by the ruins of an ancient city that had no doubt been home to many innocent souls.

And yet now there were nothing but a large group of Blanks to greet him, armed with weapons of various metals, shapes, and sizes. However, it wouldn't be the Blanks that would give the armored Otherworlder pause this time, but rather, it would be the woman who appeared to be watching over them as the group began their charge.

Long raven-black hair that seemed to become a deep red as one looked further down, claws that seemed to be made only for killing, and a cruel looking sword that seemed to have a saw-bladed reverse edge. Her red eyes would watch on in silence as the violet-armored warrior desperately tried to fight his way through the Blanks at first, although seemingly bored at such a brutish and simple display of force that was being shown to her, her curiosity would be piqued as a sudden burst of wind would blow the much smaller enemies away and leave nothing standing between the pair of warriors.

The one known as Black Gold Saw would wrest her blade from its place in the ground, knowing that battle awaited her and that her opponent was certainly not the newborn that these Blanks were.

Genji would be still processing the aftershock of the outburst that had been thrown his way from the girl he had met at the bakery, a girl that he now knew to be named Yuu.

The day would proceed despite his being visibly shook by her words, going to different classes and making similar introductions, although the mirth from his first one would be replaced be replaced with a veneer of a happy smile that seemed to be less convincing as the day wore on.

"Seriously, who bites the head off a person on their first day? It's awkward enough for me as it is with having to adjust in a new town AND a new school all at once!" The curly-haired young man would be sitting inside the consultation room of his new school which had been quirkily titled "Dawn Counseling", hoping that the sage advice from the woman running the place would put his mind at ease. "Although if we're being perfectly honest here, I don't think we're going to be here longer than a few months, my mother's job isn't exactly the kind that lays down roots." He would stare down at the cup coffee that he had been presented with disdain.

"I take it you're not a fan of coffee Kurama-kun? Such a pity." Saya Irino would observe the young man's face as he pushed away the coffee with a sour expression, a slight smile ghosting over her lips as she made her way over to the mini-fridge and opened it to find something more his speed. "It's not polite to stare Kurama-kun, now if you would please continue discuss what brought you into my office today." Her voice would be one of authority, even though internally she would be smiling coyly at his brash behavior as she pulled out a canned lemonade drink and set it down on the table as she kicked the door shut with her foot.

"Alright, alright!" Genji would take a calming breath as he contemplated how best to proceed with explaining the various combinations of mess that made up his life, deciding it was better to just leave things where they are. "Irino-san, I think I'll take a rain check on my other issues and grab a bite at the cafeteria." He would snag the lemonade drink from the table as he prepared to make a speedy exit, stopping once he noticed the older woman chuckling as if a semi-worthy joke had been told.

"It's useless you know, juggling all those responsibilities at once will only end in pain for you." This time her voice would take on a more malevolent tone, causing the student in front of her to pause and look back at her with a confused expression. "Duty-bound son, half-assed wannabe father, semi-competent student. That's right, I read your transcripts..they're just as terrible as you think they are." Saya would see him off with a warm smile, acting as if she hadn't deliberately poked swiss cheese-sized holes in his confidence, but the ends would justify the means as she gave a calculated smile as she felt Black Gold Saw's lust for battle heighten.

"And here I thought that all my ducks were already lined up, along comes a foolish stray."

Back in the Otherworld, Black Gold Saw would continue her fight with the violet-armored warrior as they continued to clash in midair even as a cold rain enveloped the quarreling pair.

Gold Saw would grit her teeth in anger as her opponent continued his current strategy, leaping away and looking for another chance to dance upon the sky and continue his air superiority. But this would also prove to be the chink in his armor, smiling as she watched him leap from one pillar to another like a hyperactive rabbit before making a move of her own by leaping from an adjacent pillar and speeding toward him like a bullet as she raised her King Saw in an attempt to sever his leg and cut off his strategy in more than just a metaphorical sense.

The silence that held the night sky in sway was broken by a sickening thud, a flash of lightning revealing that the violet-armored warrior had indeed lost something from their clash. However, it would turn out to be his helmet that had hit land before shattering to pieces.

In the pillars above Gold Saw would marvel at the revelation of her enemy's face: He was no younger than the boy that Saya had spoken to, but unlike that young lad, there was none of the kindness and heart residing in this Otherworlder. Instead, there was nothing but white-hot rage that was tempering a will of steel and a single-minded focus towards a mission that was unknown to her.

She would flash the tiniest hint of a smile before leaping forward to attack him once more, nonplussed by the sudden "Clang" that resulted from the meeting of their weapons even as he reflexively parried her blow and drove his knee into her bare midriff before sending her skidding back with a vicious forearm to the face.

Gold Saw's smile would deepen into a malefic grin as her opponent's heavy footsteps alerted her to danger as she stepped into her strike, sparks flying from her shoulder spikes as the red-haired woman balled a clawed fist and slammed it into the younger man's gut causing him to retch and dry heave before grabbing him by his violet locks and running him face-first into the nearest pillar.

She would continue to violently drive his head into that same pillar until it shattered into rubble, if she was going to keep a mad beast in stride then it was best that this animal remained unconscious until it was called upon.

Lunch time would prove to be a mixed blessing for Yuu; her outburst from earlier in the day had done her zero favors with her classmates, and while some expressed concern for the usually happy Team Manager, there were a select few that would keep their distance from the exasperated young woman.

" _Great, you have one little blowup at a newbie and suddenly everyone treats you like you're some kind of social piranha!"_ The young woman would let out another sigh as she stared at the steaming pile of mystery loaf, her stomach not giving even the slightest of rumbles at the smell of what she hoped was meat.

"Yuu-chan!" She would look out over the throngs of similarly uniformed students among the cafeteria tables, stopping once she saw a hand waving happily a few rows down as a charm bracelet with several colored birds jangling along the links. "Over here, Yuu!"

A wave of relief would wash over the short, tawny-haired girl as she recognized her dear friend Mato's bracelet and made a quick beeline for the other girl's table even as others were making their way to and from their own tables. Yuu would do her best to weave in and out of the line of fire, mumbling an "excuse me" here and there as she kept her tray over her head to avoid her food being spilled onto her school uniform until finally managing to wrangle a seat across from the pig-tailed girl with a cheerful smile.

"Hey Mato! Good to finally run into a friendly face after the big brewhaha this morning, man I keep wondering why they keep trying to teach us math? It's just confusing!" She would dramatically pull at her hair before staring down at the mystery meat and giving it a few test pokes with her plastic fork. "I wonder if other schools have to deal with the same food we do, I'm not even sure this is even cow meat."

"And that's why Moms pack lunch, because I'm pretty sure that even they had to deal with the terror that is Mystery Meat X." The raven-haired girl would give a cheeky grin as she pulled out the boxed lunch that had been lovingly made for her, the tasty aroma that had been locked within drew not only the attention of an already famished Yuu but a cadre of those students who were nearby. "Don't be shy Yuu, feel free to..dig in?" Mato would notice the many pairs of eyes now firmly locked onto her lunch box, some were merely curious onlookers who were simply following their nose to the source. Others however weren't as benign when it came to their intentions as they compared their own lunches to what they saw in Mato's lunch, contemplating some kind of half-assed Faustian trade or outright thievery.

"I'm getting the feeling that we're better off taking it outside, just blink twice if I'm right." Yuu would watch as her friend blinked twice in succession before abruptly getting up from her seat and walking closely beside Mato as the hungry eyes continued to follow them as they made their way outside, the warmth of the sun proving a welcome treat to the girls as the quickly found a place to sit and divided up Mato's meal amongst themselves. "I swear the whole school is full of assholes and savages, not to mention people who think everything's a joke."

"Yeah, I heard about what happened this morning. Seems like you really gave it to the new kid, are you sure there isn't something else that's bugging you?" The azure-eyed girl would look at her friend and teammate with concern, she had known Yuu long enough to know that it took a hell of a lot to rattle her out of her usual pep. "Is everything okay with your mother's bakery?"

"Is it ever okay, I swear we've been behind the eight ball since the year started."

The short-haired girl would sigh as flashes of a hectic holiday season ran through her head, while other girls in her class were out building snowmen, skating on the ice, or (heaven forbid) spending time with their significant others. Yuu would find herself scampering around town dressed as a Christmas Tree trying to promote her mother's seasonal peppermint cookie recipe, and while a few people would stop by the shop purely out of curiosity, there were still plenty more who were content to dish out money for the low-quality, store-bought alternative.

"I think this might be the year we finally get the rug pulled out from under us Mato-chan, mom keeps insisting on trying out new recipes with little to no success. And every time something flops, she keeps trying to push the new stuff on customers instead of working on what went wrong and maybe scaling back to what brought people in the door in the first place." She would sigh sadly as she looked at the cookie that Mato's own mother had crafted. It was a simple treat with green frosting colored in with chocolate chips for eyes so that it resembled a frog, sure it wasn't anything as fancy or as convoluted as a majority of Blissful Bits usual offerings but as the tawny-haired girl bit into the cookie, she felt a sense of warmth and belonging that had been missing from her mother's creations for a long time.

"Yuu-chan, what's the matter?" Mato would watch on quietly as her friend cried quietly, chewing on the cookie that her mother had made and not saying much else. "I'm sure we could figure out something to help your mother's shop out." She would tap her chin in thought as she tried to bring together an idea into her own imaginative head, something about Yuu's reaction started ringing a chorus of bells as her azure eyes lit up with excitement. "I've got it! We could hold a bake sale to raise funds for the bakery!"

Yuu would look at her friend like she had grown an extra head, and that extra head had decided to up and start speaking Swahili.

"Hear me out Yuu-chan, because we won't just have a regular bake sale. It'll also be a baking contest, where the winning contestant's treat gets added to the bakery's menu!" Mato would look to her friend for some sort of affirmation on her great double-whammy of an idea, even as the baker's daughter quietly mulled the idea over in her own head.

Genji would groan at what had been slopped onto his tray, the meat had been covered well enough by reddish-brown sauce but he could swear that the vegetables were just painted on with colors. "Oh man, this is gonna suck." He would sigh quietly as he remembered packing lunch for the twins earlier that morning, and aside from breaking up a small dispute over whether ketchup on scrambled eggs were considered gross (He certainly didn't think so as a little boy) he had made sure that Kana and Asuka had a good lunch by using the leftovers from last night's pepper steak and mixing it with various sweet peppers to give it a little bit of a kick.

"Bro, are you sure you don't want anything for yourself?" Asuka would look at her lunch remorsefully, even though Kana was more than happy to shove her Hello Kitty lunch box into her backpack as she giggled happily at the prospect of a new school and new friends. "You're the one always telling us how terrible school lunches are, I don't see why you have to bite the bullet for our sake."

The raven-haired young man would simply grin and pat her head gently as he handed the more stoic of the pair her backpack, a black and white bag with various kanji symbols doodled all over the place. "You shouldn't worry about me sis, it's my job to look after you both- Kana put those cupcakes DOWN!" He would stare down the still pink-haired little girl until she finally relented and put the chocolate cupcake back in the plastic box, Asuka giving a toothy grin at her sister getting reprimanded. "Now as I was saying. It's my job to look after the two of you, even Miss Sticky-Fingers over here." Genji would sling his own bag over his shoulder as he looked over to see that the door to their mother's office was still closed from the night before and pushed down the feelings of contempt that threatened to bubble up from within, instead going over to the front door and opening it for the twins.

"Besides, once I leave for college..you two are screwed when it comes to home-cooked meals." The three of them would share a happy burst of laughter as they left home for the day.

"I should've kept some of that pepper steak, curse my gentle nature!" The raven-haired young man would sigh as he stabbed a piece of meat with the plastic fork, going wide-eyed as the faux utensil didn't even penetrate the remains of whatever animal was on his tray. "You've gotta be kidding me, do they expect me to eat this crap with my hands like a savage?" He would flip his tray over in defiance as he got to his feet and looked around at the students who were now giving him strange looks of their own "My fellow students, are you really satisfied with this F-Grade level of food they're giving you?!-" Genji's words would be cut off by a torrent of meat loaves to his face, followed by various individuals grumbling amongst themselves.

"Wow, you're really just **on** all the time, aren't you?" Genji would clear the reddish-brown gravy that had been slopped in his eyes to find a girl with messy blonde hair looking at him with a slight smile and a handful of napkins. "And here I thought all those funny stories in class were an act, something to impress all the ladies perhaps?" She would giggle as the raven-haired young man did his best to try and clean up the worst of it, even though there were now a fair amount of stains on his uniform and gravy dripping from his hair.

"Well what can I say, I'm a people pleaser..even if people show their appreciation via mystery meat." Genji would give a slight bow, causing the blonde to giggle once again even though gravy was now hitting his shoes due to the motion. "So, to whom do I owe the thanks for getting to clean up, even just a little?" He would smile gratefully even as his stomach growled in annoyance, causing the girl to break out into a fit of laughter even as she unzipped her bag and held out a small Tupperware box to him.

"My name is Kagari Izuriha, and if I'm not mistaken, I'd say you were starving." She would give a small chuckle as the reddish-brown goop continued to drip from the boy's curly hair, she knew a few dozen napkins weren't even close to being enough to clean up everything but it was a start. "Come on, I know a place where you can get that gunk out of your hair. Maybe you can tell me your name along the way?" Kagari would grab his hand and walk with him to the gym, knowing that the boys' basketball team was away at the regional playoffs she would have free reign over the place. And thanks to her position as class president, she had been given a master key as a reward for her excellence in academics and, while she did occasionally use it to keep up on her studies.

There was just a lot more fun to be had with mischief.

The pair would sneakily make their way through the halls of the school, Kagari careful to wipe up whatever gravy drops happened to hit the floor until they finally reached the gym showers where she would accompany him inside.

"I'm guessing that since you're a newbie here they haven't given you your gym clothes yet, so feel free to dunk your head under the showers. We can talk while you-" The blonde-haired girl would gasp as she spied him starting to unbutton his dress shirt, turning away as her cheeks burned bright red in embarrassment. "H-Hey! What are you doing?! I said take a dunk, not a damn shower!"

Genji would continue to undress in silence despite her continued insistence to do otherwise, his mind focused on the countdown clock he'd crafted inside his head with a knowing frown.

" _Two hours left, then we're supposed to head down to the bakery so Kana can give her thanks for the bread."_ He would turn on the shower and step under the cold flowing water, making sure to wash out the gravy thoroughly as he took a breath. "Genji..Genji Kurama."

She would sigh quietly, glancing over to see the remnants of his stained uniform as well as his unmentionables. "So now I know your name, and that you're a boxers guy. Peachy." Her blush would deepen at that last bit, shaking her head at the thoughts that were threatening to seep into her mind. "Now can you please hurry up and get dressed, I'd rather we not be seen coming out together like this!" Kagari would whimper at the implications of a class president walking out of the boys' gym showers with a student who was already at the center of the rumor mill, no thanks to Yuu-chan's little outburst.

He would simply chuckle as he turned the shower off, shaking whatever water was left in his hair free in a manner similar to a dog that had just finished a bath of its own. "Yeah, I know that feeling. It's how I got kicked out of school number three, the first two times were for picking fights." The raven-haired young man would dress quickly, three years of having to time out showers in a rundown slum were good training for such an act. After all, if there was one thing his mother truly despised, it was being unable to take a nice hot soak after having to deal with washing the twins. "Of course, those were just rumors. Not that the class prez there gave a damn, she couldn't wait to throw me to the wolves just to save her own reputation."

For a moment, Kagari would sense immense bitterness in the young man's voice, almost as if he were carrying a weight not meant for his shoulders but enduring it nonetheless. She wondered if in her haste to get them out, the blonde had dredged up some sort of hated memory and would take his aggression towards another girl out on her instead.

"Look, I didn't mean to throw salt in an old wound. But, I'm class president..that means it's my responsibility to look out for everyone in the class. She would look over to see that he was now securing his shoes and checking on the rest of his belongings. "Even the new kid who managed to somehow piss off the peppiest Team Manager our school's ever known, and end up the target of a Mystery Meat barrage on their first day." Kagari would sigh as she placed a hand over her heart and wiped away imaginary sweat, feeling like the bitterness from earlier had dissipated and things settled into normalcy. "You must have the worst luck in history."

Genji would give a mirthful burst of laughter, so much that it echoed off the walls of the empty shower walls as he stood up and placed a hand upon her shoulder.

"Oh man, the stories I could tell you someday Kagari-san!"

Coach Kamoshida had decided to leave a note for the team stating that Yuu herself would oversee practice drills that afternoon, he was curious about why he had spotted the class president walking out of the boys' shower with another student but he had little time to investigate such a scandal.

He had a team to keep together, and without his right-hand gal to keep the ship running and he'd be damned if a mother's obsession with her failing bakery would halt the prospect of yet another winning season.

"This shouldn't be too hard to deal with: Just explain how pivotal Yuu-chan is to the program, how we'd be lost without her, and how all her friends would miss her." The weathered man would stop at the crosswalk, making sure that his backup plan was still very much secured within his breast pocket.

"And if push comes to shove, there's always giving the poor soul what she really needs."

 _ **Again I gotta give great praise to my editor and collaborator Fire Lord 626 who helped me piece this together, show 'em some love and check out their Black Rock Shooter fic "A World Reborn?"**_

 _ **Ta-Ta for now!**_


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